Hyundai Motor India, a wholly owned subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Company of South Korea, said rural markets are expected to account for 20% of SUV sales in fiscal year 2024-25.
“Our rural SUV share will be 20% this year,” said Tarun Garg, chief operating officer, Hyundai Motor India This Hindu. “More interestingly, the penetration of rural SUVs and urban SUVs is now the same, it has never happened before,” he added.
Hyundai’s SUV penetration in India is one of the highest at 65% compared to 51% in the industry. He suggested that the company saw a surge in SUV sales in April and this trend is likely to continue throughout the financial year.
According to Mr. Garg, Indian customers want to have more SUVs and to cater to diverse demands, Hyundai offers a complete range of SUVs including Venue, Exter, Creta and Alcazar in multiple variants. In FY23-24, the auto company sold 6 lakh cars, the highest ever.
In terms of the overall industry scenario, Garg said, post-pandemic, the auto industry has recorded two consecutive years of high growth and two consecutive years of highest volume growth in FY22-23 and FY23-24, with growth of 20% and 8%. appropriately.
“Most OEMs after the recent conclave organized by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) felt that due to the high growth base in the last two years, the growth in FY24-25 may be low single digit. In April, the augment was only 1.7%,” he commented.
He further said that due to high interest rates, geopolitical risks, high base (formed in FY22 and FY23) and lack of pent-up demand currently, this would mean that industry growth this year will be subdued and in the low single digits.
